This morning the Legal Aid Justice Center, with the assistance of
Troutman Sanders LLP and other attorneys, filed a class action in
federal court in Richmond on behalf of 11 Virginia inmates. The suit
challenges the Virginia Parole Board’s administration of the parole
process in a manner that deprives the thousands of Virginia inmates
convicted of violent offenses committed prior to 1995 of their right to
fair and meaningful consideration for parole as required by Virginia law
and the U.S. Constitution. The lawsuit, Burnette v. Fahey, was
filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of
Virginia in Richmond.

Stephen A. Northup of Troutman Sanders stated, “We are filing this
lawsuit today on behalf of those imprisoned in Virginia who are eligible
for parole but are being denied their constitutional rights. Virginia
law requires the Parole Board to release those found suitable for parole
and to consider a broad range of circumstances in making this
determination. In violation of Virginia law and protections under the
U.S. Constitution, the Parole Board has been making parole
determinations without considering all the circumstances Virginia law
requires.” Virginia law and the Virginia Parole Board’s written manual
state that the circumstances to be considered in making a parole
determination include the nature of the crime, the sentence imposed, the
inmate’s prior record, the inmate’s record in prison, whether the inmate
has been rehabilitated, and whether release would be an acceptable risk.

Virginia abolished discretionary parole in 1995. The men and women who
committed crimes in Virginia before 1995, however, are still eligible
for parole. For individuals sentenced under the old parole system,
judges often imposed lengthy sentences, believing that these men and
women would be released on parole after serving as little as one-quarter
of the sentence they received. Abigail Turner, the Litigation Director
for the Legal Aid Justice Center, stated, “The Parole Board’s unlawful
conduct has prolonged the plaintiffs' imprisonment and caused them to
serve far longer sentences than those contemplated by the law at the
time the sentences were handed down prior to 1995. The Parole Board’s
treatment of parole-eligible inmates convicted of violent offenses has
amounted to a de facto abolition of parole, violating not only
due process but also the ex post facto provision of the U.S.
Constitution that prohibits punishment beyond that issued at the time of
conviction.”

William R. Richardson, Jr., an attorney from Arlington who has worked
with members of the Virginia General Assembly to reform the parole
process, stated, “The failure of the Virginia Parole Board to give fair
and meaningful consideration of parole for ‘old law’ inmates, in
addition to being illegal, harms Virginia taxpayers, who must bear the
cost of warehousing thousands of men and women who by any reasonable
measure have rehabilitated themselves and no longer belong in prison.
Continuing to lock away so many men and women who have learned useful
job skills also deprives the Commonwealth of revenue they could
contribute from their work. And it deprives their families of money for
support as well as emotional support of children as they grow up and of
parents as they age.”

The Virginia Institutionalized Persons Project of the Legal Aid Justice
Center and a group of private attorneys concerned about Virginia’s
broken parole system are representing the plaintiffs and the class. The
class action includes approximately 6,000 men and women incarcerated in
Virginia for violent offenses committed before 1995.

The plaintiffs have asked the court to order the Board to issue new
rules which conform to the requirements of due process and ensure fair
and meaningful consideration of parole for inmates convicted of violent
offenses. In addition, plaintiffs ask the court to require the Parole
Board to specifically consider all of the required factors in reaching
parole decisions and to enjoin the Parole Board from focusing solely on
the nature of the crime in deciding suitability for parole.

The Legal Aid Justice Center provides legal representation for
low-income individuals in Virginia who have the least access to legal
resources. The LAJC staff of 40 work from offices in Charlottesville,
Falls Church, Petersburg, and Richmond. The Virginia Institutionalized
Persons (VIP) Project within the LAJC led the effort to bring this
lawsuit. The VIP’s mission is to investigate the conditions of
Virginia’s prisons and mental institutions and, through political
advocacy and legal action, to increase accountability within the system
to ensure that Virginia operates its institutions consistent with
constitutional standards and human dignity. See www.justice4all.org/our_programs/VIP
for more information.

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